House of Amon
Not to be confused with Amon the Marksman This article uses Pilantine naming conventions, which list surnames before given names The House of Amon, formerly styled as the Great Royal House of Amon, was the final of the Seven Houses of Foerunner Kings to ruler over Pilat, a historic nation-state located primarily in the Badlands of the Delkish Continent. They were the longest reigning monarchs of Pilat, ruling it from the height of Pilantine power all the way through its long decline, which led to the country's absorption by Sefenlander Emperor Messink Messon in the year CC: 4,870, and the eventual overthrow of the monarchy by Messink's son Makexes by CC: 4,920 following the Siege of the City Around the Great Pyramid, the Sack of Kastrum, and the Execution of the Foerunner King Claimant Amon Messinkos. After these events, the house's few surviving members went into exile, and were later reinstated as the Lords of Amonia, ruling from the Stone Ziggurat. The House of Amon became a minor vassal to the Ducal House of Talltowers, who ruled the Bightlands of Crahia from Toothtower. Lord Ayazul Ayatol Amon, calling himself "Lord A's" was a minor flatterer at the court of the the King of Crahia, Ristt Blot by the time of Tale of Zul. The Kingdom of Crahia had completely subsumed his littler corner of his house's once great empire, with chunks of Pilat then also belonging to Lobott, and the aforementioned Badlands. Heraldry: ]] '']] The House of Amon takes its heraldry from the ''Pilantine Banner which has been in use since the rule of the nigh-mythical House of Mammon. This banner also serves as the basis for the Stone Banner of the Stone Empire of the Far West. Heraldic banners have traditionally been used by states taking inspiration from the Southern Empire of old. Pilat was a nation-state of the Southern Empire, and the House of Amon claimed (and to a certain extent, does still claim) continuation with the Southern Empire. The House of Amon's heraldry depicts a Cardinal Crest (the traditional symbol of the Faith of the Four Gods of Nature - the former official state religion of Pilat) with its top arrow over the Great Pyramid of the Badlands. Unlike older depictions of the Great Pyramid, herein the pyramid is red, reflecting its discoloration with age. For context, generally the pyramid is depicted as black, and in the year ~ AT: - 2,000, which is when construction on it first began, this is certainly the color it would have been. Like most old-fashioned heraldic banners, the House of Amon's heraldry features a prominent black outline, which is also used to hold up the Cardinal Crest. This symbolizes that only tradition can hold up the faith, the house, and the country. The "Guiding Light of Pilat" herein is shown as a mirror reflection of the red pyramid with a narrow white line running through it. This is to show that the importance of the "Guiding Light" has been minimized since the rule of the infamous first king of the house, who worshiped it as a monotheistic deity. History: Height of Pilantine Power: Finded as the Great Royal House of Aten by Foerunner King Aten Angh (born Amon Angh) following the Aten Coup wherein the Great Royal Princess Satan Xepho-titi-Aya (daughter-wife of the last Satanic Foerunner King, Satan Sekelet) secretly married him, and both worked together to charm the Great Generals into overthrowing her weak father Sekelet. Angh was handsome, intelligent, and an insane zealot devoted to the (most-likely anomalous) Faith of the Aten, a beyond-divine entity in the form of the sun or sun disc, said to be the source of life, love, lightning and fire. It is also called the "Guiding Light of Pilat." In doing so he cast down the Four Gods of Nature. Angh chose Xepho-titi-Aya as his wife for her political skills, and beauty. He built the city of Aten in what would later become West Pilat in Lobott, making it his capital. Rainishmen would in later years incorrectly read the hieroglyphics of the city's name as Adon, meaning "lord" in Pilantine, and named it SENAEVRVM, meaning roughly "Lordliness." It eventually became known as Lordvm in Lobott, and is the westernmost point of Pilat. Despite Angh's vast political skills, his rule was unpopular because of his faith. Statues of him were broken following his death, his tomb was looted, and his daughters thrown into the Great Pyramid. His wife ruled briefly following his death, becoming the 2nd Foerunner Monarch in their dynasty, and oversaw the destruction of the city of Aten in apparent sacrifice to her god. She commited suicide in the public square of her hometown, Satanopolis, the previous dilapidated capital of Pilat, which was shortly thereafter renamed Sekeletopolis, and eventually became known as Skeltertonne. Eventually, the infamous Helter-Skelter Incident would occur at that very same square. Xepho-titi-Aya was succeeded by Angh's firstborn son by an unknown concubine, Aten Tophut Xepho-yi-Angh, who ruled for just nine years and was a hornman. He is usually just called King Toefoot. Toefoot eventually changed his name to Amon Tophut Xepho-yi-Angh. Toefoot was assassinated using an unknown assassin's guild from Parthage. His tomb remained undisturbed save for very petty grave robberies until CC: 5,723, when it was discovered, unearthing a good amount of history of Pilat. His assassin was most likely hired by his successor, Amon Aye, who had been an advisor to Sekelet, as well as Angh's brother, and had even married Xepho-titi-Aya as her second husband. Aye adopted his son-in-law, Great General Herodgebet (of common birth), who ascended the throne and became Amon Herodgebet. Herodgebet ruled twice as long as his predecessors combined, and despite his relative lack of fame, was most likely the single most successful Foerunner King in Pilantine history (save for possibly Mammon Mneme). Apapilantine Decline: Herodgebet's son by Amon Aye's daughter was Amon Apapilat, and so began the so-called Apapilantine Decline. This was a long decline marked by a lack of ingenuity, and a lack of expansion. The only thing that kept the empire going was border wars and skirmishes to prevent themselves from losing territory, something which they were especially bad at doing in the west, where Sarplander incursions completely took the whole of Arkadia from out of their hands. Their hold of West Pilat fell apart with the arrival of Billow the Slave, and his freedmen the Sefenlander Slaves. The Pilantinemen were ostensibly allies of the Empire of the Sefenlands, and practiced slavery on large scales. Billow forced them to stop the practice, for it was "sin." This ruined the economy of Pilat, and it fell into a long depression. Pilantine Civil War: Foerunner King Amon Apapilat XVI felt that his predecessors had erred in continuing to practice slavery, and converted to the Faith o' Nine within the lifetime of Billow, who is heralded as the messianic avatar of the god Canetol in many sects of the faith. He hoped to forge stronger alliances with the Coldlands, the nation-state which had formed from Billow's rag-tag army of freedmen revolutionaries. Instead he invited only an attempted coup by Marcvs Mallvm, a slave master, and zealot follower of the Faith of Four. The House of Mallvm was by then the secondary house of Pilat, made up of the descendants of the long-gone Rainish Magickal Glory. His fellow conspirators included future leader of the Flotch Slave Army Rakard Bystone (owner of the Slave Generals Kaano and Iaako) as well as Lieu Ymu, a follower of the Faith of Calthoss the Shadow & the Shine, son of Lord Vandre Ymu in Telf, technically aligned with the 2nd Rainish Magickal Glory. In essence, both the 1st Great War and 1st Cold War had come to Pilat early. Unfortunately, the war spiralled out of control, and both side's leaders were killed. Both sides employed a scorched earth policy, and the war continued on for over a decade after the actual Great War's end. Eventually, a solution was reached wherein an extremely limited form of slavery was employed. Slaves would not be chattel, and could enter into nine-year-long contracts, wherein their families would be compensated with a few privileges following the end of the period or the slave's death. Apapilat's successor was Tolem Mallvm, son of Marcvs, who was actually a traitor to his father, and staunchly anti-slavery. He was adopted by Apapilat's brother Amon Klemenos. Tolem was succeeded by his granddaughter Amon Apapilat XVII, the last Foerunner of Pilat. Invasion of the Sefenlands: Later in Tolem's reign, Emperor Sadei Hairas of the Sefenlands bloodily put down the Topok Rebellion, and entered his country into a brief period of isolation. This greatly hurt the Pilantine economy, which was only barely getting by with its limited form of slavery. More than that, the other nations of the Delklands treated it as a pariah for this slavery. Tolem taught Apapilat how to rule as best he could, hiring advisors and teachers from around the world. Most notably he hired an Anasi-Anasi wandering red named Rossa to teach her in the ways of wooing men, and in the ways of faith. Apapilat eventually became queen, and a follower of the Faith of Anasia. In the final years of Tolem's long reign (he was called the "Ancient Apapilantine," for he ruled nearly 90 years), an infant stowaway survivor of the Topok Rebellion named Messink was spirited away to the headquarters of the Slayers' Guild, located secretly beneath Mount Beles within Pilantine territory. Growing up there, and often visiting the City Around the Great Pyramid during his childhood, Messink grew up thinking of himself as both Pilantine and Sefenlander. He would eventually be revealed to be the nameless child, beloved of the nameless gods of this Earth by the Blood Children of the Kinglands, who gave him an army, and a means of restoring order in the Sefenlands. He overthrew and de-bodied Sadei Hairas, become the finder of the House of Messon and Emperor of the Sefenlands. He immediately set his eyes on conquering the unruly nations of the Delklands. He considered Pilat to be the last on his list because he had a deeply ingrained respect for the monarchy of the Foerunner Kings. Once he had conquered the whole of the Delkish Continent, and quashed most resistance movements, he set his eyes on the continent of the Ayelands. His scouts told him that he would be greatly overextending his supply lines, but that an invasion could be done slowly, over a period of about thirty years. He then decided that to successfully invaded the Ayelands, the whole of the Badlands must needs be under his control. To that end he decided that peacefully entering Pilat, and declaring himself ruler may be the better strategy than simply invading and murdering everyone there. He decided to meet with Queen Apapilat. Tinder Tender & the Tyrant: Apapilat secretly disguised herself as a dragontender working within the Great Royal Temple in the town of Kastrum (located just thirty kilometers north of the Great Pyramid), and repeatedly postponed her meeting with the emperor to secretly vet his worthiness. She found that he was a perfect gentleman to her and all her "servants" (who were in reality mostly members of her royal guard), and was even willing to talk to her as a lowly servant without lording his "station" over her. In fact he even humbled himself before her by allowing himself to be taught how to ride the queen's particularly unruly dragon Foedanael. He was not aware the dragon belonged to the queen directly or else he would not have disrespected her property so. Eventually she decided she approved of him, and revealed her identity. He was impressed with her, and gave her an ultimatum: autonomy under his rule, or war. She took autonomy, and slavery officially ended in Pilat on that day. The two began a secret romance. A dramatized form of this romance is told to children across Western Parthalenn and the Delklands, "Tinder Tender & the Tyrant." War in Pilat: Following Apapilat's unseemly "suicide" (execution) by dragonfire, she was succeeded by Amon Messinkos. Amon Messinkos was the bastard son of Messink, in fact his name means "son of Messink" in Sefenlander. Yet he was the only child Apapilat had in any form legitimized, as all her other children were unacknowledged, and by men of low stations. The queen had been an excellent ruler, but had not been mindful of her potential legacy. Most notably, she did nothing to calm the anger of Messink's legitimate son by his wife Anu Messon (Topok), Makexes Messon. It was Makexes that ordered her death following his ascent to the throne. Makexes also ordered that Messinkos' claims be made illegitimate, and ordered an invasion of Pilat. For seven years war raged in Pilat, aided by the neighboring Lobott waging their own War in Lobott against Sefenlander rule. Messinkos briefly fled to Bredenn Isle, but loyalists there spotted him and he was brought to the Four Scorpions, where Emperor Makexes de-bodied him. They were brothers. In fact, they were the same age, and it was rumored that they may have been possibly swapped at birth. It was possible that Makexes ordered the death of his very own mother, and definitely murdered his brother. So the War in Pilat ended in Sefenlander victory. Eventually the War in Lobott, however, would end in a decisive Lobott victory, and the rise of the Delkish Empire. Delkish Empire: The House of Talltowers was awarded control over the Bightlands, which included a large chunk of Pilat, most notably Amonia, where the House of Amon is said to have originated. Surviving members who had worked closely with members of the House of Talltowers during the War in Pilat were gathered together, and joined together by marriages and shared land under Lord Herod Amon (a distant descendant of King Tolem, and Sir Judus Talltowers' son-in-law) ending the convention of listing their surnames before their given names. A large percentage of the imperial treasury of the Sefenlands was awarded to the House of Amon as a form of reparations, because in a way the Delkish Empire claimed a form of continuation with the Sefenlands, The new Delkish Monarch was of course Queen Sulenn Messoloriha, daughter of Makexes. The House of Amon used its newfound wealth to repair Amonia's damage from the War in Pilat, and also to build the Stone Ziggurat, from where they rule. Kingdom of Crahia: Since then, the house has fared well. They are wealthier than then, and much larger than then, but also they are not as respected, and are seen as rats desperately trying to cling to old glory. Their current lord, Lord Ayazul Ayatol Amon is a flatterer with ambitions of being given a Viceroyalty Over the Teeth Mountains by King Ristt Blot. After the Dogfight: By the time of the Dogfight and Last Day of Lobtonne, they had grown so numerous, and had developed so many factions that large swathes of the family came down on either side of Vayess' War for Conquest, with some of them continuing to support the claim of Jahartos Messoloriha, and still others naming themselves Foerunner Kings Come Again. Ayatul was killed by Grand Kaath Stayeen during the Dogfight, and had not named a clear heir. Remnants of the house survived until the Destruction of Earth, and their house banners could be seen flowing in the wind of Mattes' Great-Hall and the Æther. Category:History Category:Houses